Alchemy Among the Hundred Crafts of Cultivation

Alchemy Among the Hundred Crafts of Cultivation

"Qianqing, this is the assignment you'll be taking on. It has already been decided." As he spoke, Li Lilong took out a sheet of paper and handed it to Li Qianqing.

It listed where Li Qianqing would be going, what he needed to do, the cultivation resources he could receive each year, and the additional rewards for exceeding his assigned tasks.

As Li Qianqing accepted the paper, Li Qianyin hurriedly leaned over to take a look.

"Changle Mountain?" The moment she saw where Li Qianqing was going, Li Qianyin became unwilling. "Father, why did you assign Qianqing-ge there?"

She, Li Qianyin, would be staying at Changqing Mountain, the ancestral land. If Li Qianqing went to Changle Mountain, wouldn't the two of them be separated?

She did not want to be apart from Qianqing-ge!

Normally, given the talent Li Qianqing had displayed, there was an eight or nine out of ten chance he would be assigned to Changqing Mountain, the ancestral land. Developing here would undoubtedly be best, and the spiritual energy conditions were abundant as well.

"Yinyin, it was like this—I asked Fourth Uncle to assign me to Changle Mountain." Li Qianqing explained in time, not letting Li Lilong take the blame. "Changle Mountain is also close to my birthplace."

"Oh, so that's how it is." Li Qianyin nodded. She could understand the explanation Qianqing-ge gave her. After all, Li Qianqing was different from her.

Her father held a position of great authority within the Lineage, while Li Qianqing's parents were both ordinary mortals.

"Father, I want to go to Changle Mountain too." Since she could not change Li Qianqing's destination, Li Qianyin thought of changing her own. She no longer wanted to stay at Changqing Mountain either.

The moment Li Lilong heard that, his face darkened somewhat. Flicking his sleeve, he sternly said, "Nonsense!"

Li Qianyin jumped in fright and instantly hid behind Li Qianqing, poking her head out from behind him.

What she feared most was her own father.

Only behind Li Qianqing could she feel safe now.

Gathering her courage, she said, "I don't care. I'm going to Changle Mountain. Otherwise, I won't cultivate anymore."

As she spoke, she clutched tightly at Li Qianqing's clothes.

Li Qianqing could feel the young girl's hand trembling.

It seems I carry more weight in her heart than I thought.

Though he thought this, he did not speak. This was not the right time for him to speak either.

"Come out. Look me in the eyes and repeat what you just said."

Li Qianyin shrank her head back, but continued shouting loudly from behind Li Qianqing, "I don't care! I'm going to Changle Mountain! Otherwise, I won't cultivate anymore!"

To be honest, seeing his daughter rely so heavily on Li Qianqing made him, as her father, somewhat uncomfortable.

After only three years together, his daughter had already begun disobeying him.

Though his daughter, Li Lilong's daughter, could be somewhat willful at times, she had always listened to him, her father.

The Li Clan was not a direct line, and after three generations, marriage was permitted. Li Qianqing had been born in Yanxin Town, a town founded by mortals who had branched off from the Lineage during its fourth generation.

Li Qianqing would not be a bad choice for a son-in-law.

Over these three years, he had long since seen Li Qianqing clearly.

As the elder in charge of assigning Lineage affairs, he observed every Lineage descendant who entered Changqing Mountain to cultivate each year.

Besides talent, the most important factor, character and disposition were also very important.

Father and daughter were now at odds with one another.

Li Qianqing felt Li Qianyin poking him from behind. She was asking him for help.

"Fourth Uncle, let Yinyin go to Changle Mountain. I'll supervise her cultivation." This promise alone definitely would not make Li Lilong relent; another condition had to be added. "If her cultivation during her time at Changle Mountain fails to meet your requirements, you can call her back at any time."

After saying that, Li Qianqing shifted aside. It was Li Qianyin's turn to state her position. His words alone would not be enough.

"Yes, yes, Father, Qianqing-ge is right. Don't you just want me to cultivate properly? As long as you let me go to Changle Mountain, I'll cultivate properly." Li Qianyin was not slow-witted. She immediately understood that Qianqing-ge was helping her persuade her father, so she echoed his words.

Li Qianqing recalled something.

Li Qianyin had excellent talent in Artifact Refining. In his previous life, just as she had begun to show her edge, she had died.

If he brought her to his side and gave her suitable guidance, she would be of considerable help to the future development of this Lineage.

Talent in the Hundred Crafts of Cultivation was also very important. The development of a Lineage could not do without cultivators gifted in these fields.

Li Lilong said nothing, clearly lost in thought.

The moment Li Qianqing saw Li Lilong like this, he knew he had already agreed. That thoughtful appearance was merely for Li Qianyin to see, so she would understand that it was not so easy for him, as her father, to agree.

Seeing Li Qianyin nervously clasping her little hands, Li Qianqing found it somewhat amusing.

"Fine."

Before Li Qianyin could rejoice, Li Lilong added another sentence.

"However, before that, you must first cultivate the Rain Transformation Art and the Geng Metal Art, these two minor spells, to the minor mastery stage. Then I can arrange work for you at Changle Mountain."

"Okay." Li Qianyin nodded repeatedly. Learning these two basic spells of the Cultivation World meant that her assignment would be the same as Qianqing-ge's.

Li Qianqing's assignment at Changle Mountain was to tend the Spiritual Fields.

Changle Mountain was more than eighteen hundred li away from Changqing Mountain, the Li Clan Ancestral Land.

That was the straight-line distance. Some stretches required crossing mountains and ridges, while others required detours. The actual travel distance was at least twenty-two hundred li.

Whether it was a cultivation Lineage or a sect force, the place where it established itself and developed had to possess a Spiritual Vein.

Yet in the vast Cultivation World, places with Spiritual Veins were as scarce as oases in a desert.

The Li Family's core sphere of influence extended more than three thousand li in every direction. Of the places with Spiritual Veins, aside from Changqing Mountain, the ancestral land, and Changle Mountain, only Azure Wave Lake remained.

Changle Mountain was better than Azure Wave Lake. It possessed two Micro Spirit Veins, and the spiritual energy it could provide cultivators was not lacking.

Running and resting along the way, Li Qianqing arrived at Changle Mountain after two days.

During the three years of cultivation for Li Family descendants, the Light Body Art was a spell they absolutely had to learn. This art could greatly increase a cultivator's travel speed.

Normally, once the Light Body Art reached minor mastery, travel time could be reduced by two-thirds. In practice, however, that also depended on the individual cultivator and the conditions of the route.

"Second Grandfather."

Not long after Li Qianqing entered Changle Mountain, he saw an old man who appeared to be around sixty.

Li Ditu, an elder of the ninth generation of the Li Clan, was at the Qi Refining Eighth Layer and was also an Alchemist.

One reason Li Qianqing had chosen Changle Mountain was Li Ditu.

Among the Hundred Crafts of Cultivation, his Alchemy Talent was considered average, but it was the best talent among his various crafts. In his previous life, he had taken this path.

Naturally, he would take the same path in this life. Moreover, he would be at the level of "astonishing talent"—at least before refining eighth-grade pills, he could display the performance of a genius.